One of the best things about the ketogenic diet is its high fat intake, which rarely leaves you feeling hungry. However, you might find yourself in situations where you still need a snack during the day. If that happens, it’s helpful to have several keto snacks on-hand to keep you going and maintain ketosis. That’s why we’ve compiled two monster lists to keep in your toolkit: “The Ready-to-Eat Keto Snack List” and the “The Homemade Keto Snack List.” To be sure, healthy keto snack ideas are endless, so get creative and share your personal favorite in the comment section.

Not all Keto Snacks are Created Healthy

“Low-carb” doesn’t always mean keto-approved. In fact, a lot of low-carb snacks, such as Atkins products, can be too processed and therefore unhealthy.

As a rule of thumb, try to stick to whole food-based snacks as much as possible, preferably homemade (we’ve provided a lot of quick ideas too, for when that’s not possible). Remember, food is supposed to go bad. Preservatives and fake ingredients have not been in the human diet until just recently, and we are not well equipped to handle them. The body’s response is usually to create inflammation in response to food-like ingredients that it deems as “foreign.”

Make Sure Your Keto Snacks are High Fat

Another difference between the ketogenic diet and your run-of-the-mill low-carb diet is the macronutrient ratios. Since you have to be careful about keeping your carb count low, you’ll want to focus on getting plenty of fat and protein. A great way to do this is from your snacks. Now that we have those guidelines in place, let’s dive into some ready-to-eat keto snacks.

Ready-to-Eat Healthy Keto Snack List

Meal prep is one of the best ways to set yourself up for success, but we all know life gets busy. No need to use that as a reason to cheat or eat something that will hurt your ketone levels. Here are some of the best snacks options to grab and go:

Beef jerky: Make sure the brand you choose is no- or very low-carb with very few added ingredients. Be wary of anything with added sugars, as that will kick up the carb content. Recommended Keto Carne jerky here.

String cheese: Make sure it’s the full-fat version without added carbs or other fillers.

Nuts or nut butters and seeds: Remember some nuts are fairly high in carbs (like peanuts, cashews, and pistachios). Stay away from any nut butters that have added polyunsaturated oils or “vegetable oils.” Choose higher fats choices, such as almonds or macadamia nuts, and seeds high in omega 3s like flaxseed and chia. Nuttzo is a great choice for a blend of good nuts. We, of course, make a delicious keto nut butter with MCTs and macadamia nuts. If you’re interested how nuts can affect you on a ketogenic diet, check out our Full Guide to Nuts on the Ketogenic Diet.

Stevia sweetened dark chocolate: If not sweetened with stevia, make sure it’s at least 80% cocoa content or higher, as the carbs can add up quickly otherwise. Here is a low carb friendly chocolate.

Seaweed snacks:Make sure there aren’t any added ingredients that contribute extra carbs. Also make sure there aren’t weird flavors or massive amounts of oils in these. They can be added as an extra crunch that you can sometimes miss on keto! Here is a recommended brand.

Laughing Cow cheese wheels:Choose the full-fat versions. Try to get real cheese if you can, but these in a pinch if you need convenience.

Cacao nibs: These are a nice low-carb alternative to chocolate chips! They have the same type of crunch, are way more nutrient dense, and very low carb. Watch out though, you can definitely overdo these. Here are Terrasoul cacao nibs we like.

Avocados: GREAT choice because they’re a whole food and very easy to eat “as is.” Just add a little salt and pepper and you’re golden. Maybe even a little olive oil in that perfect hole in the middle.

Quest Bars: Keep these to a minimum and as a last resort, such as if you’re traveling and left without anything else. While they’re low-carb due to erythritol as a sweetener, they’re also processed with a few weird ingredients so keep them for emergencies. Find Quest Bars here.

Sugar-free Jello or popsicles: Limit these for special occasions, as they’re highly processed and provide no added health benefit.

Macadamia Nuts: One of the most keto friendly nuts. Packed with wonderful high fats. Careful! Can be super easy to overeat. Find raw macadamia nuts here in easy to travel with mini packs.

Olives: Great right out off the olive bar if you can find one! Just try to make sure they don’t have any other oils but olive oil in them.

Phew! What else can you think of? These next ones take a teeny bit of effort but will take your quality keto game to the next level.

Homemade Healthy Keto Snack List

As we said, homemade keto snacks are the best choice, so opt for these over anything packaged as much as possible. These ideas can also work for if you have a little extra time to prep or are looking for keto snacks to make for an event or party:

Veggie sticks: Simply slice up your favorite keto-friendly veggies and store in the fridge so they’re easy to grab and go. You could dip these in homemade guacamole or eat with full-fat cheeses.

Bacon: Cook some ahead of time to have on hold for snacks on the go.

Cheese dips or fondues: Enjoy with keto-friendly veggies.

Pizza or taco rolls:Use baked full-fat cheese as the “wrap” and fill with pizza or tacos meats and spices.

Keto chips:Make them from cheddar cheese baked in a dished until crispy, then cut up into chip triangles.

Low-carb finger food sandwiches: Use something grain-free as the “bread,” such as cheese, lettuce, spinach, or hormone-free deli meat.

Cold cuts meats and cheese: Just simply roll a healthy lunch meat around a full-fat cheese. This works well for a quick snack or party appetizer.

Devilled or hard-boiled eggs

Steak tips

Cauliflower crust pizza bites or calzones: If you haven’t tried a cauliflower crust yet, you’re basically still living in the dark ages. Find a keto-friendly recipe online.

Bacon-wrapped anything: Ideas could be mozzarella sticks, jalapeno poppers, asparagus, or beef. This is a popular one for parties.

Berry ice cream: Berries should be eaten in very limited quantities, but this could be a good option for a treat or entertaining. Just blend up your favorite frozen berries with some coconut cream or heavy cream to form a healthy keto-friendly ice cream.

Chocolate mousse: Mix heavy cream with some cocoa powder and a little vanilla for an easy mousse. Add some stevia, if needed.

I’m really into cream cheese on celery with either cinnamon or cayenne & lemon pepper. Might sound weird, but the herbs really make this satisfying.

Deansays:

It would be nice to know how to get a variety of fatty treats that work for someone who has IBS, is allergic to dairy (not just lactose intolerant), is allergic to chocolate, and is a Type 2 diabetic. Oh, we also don’t drink coffees or teas so those are also off the table.

While I don’t have these restrictions, my wife does. It makes for quite the challenge because our food choices are so limited. If there are some healthy snack suggestions that fit within those guidelines, I would love to hear more about them.